A Brave Soul
by Jacky654
Summary: Courage goes on a hiking trail with his owners. What will happen this time? Characters belong to their rightful owners.
1. Fallen Down

The mountain loomed above the elderly couple and their dog. It was breathtakingly beautiful, taller than all the other mountains. The sun shone above, lighting everything so perfectly in the forest surrounding the spectacle. Birds flittered in the trees, and small insects crawled and flew about. But Courage wasn't paying any mind to the scenery surrounding him and his owners.

Muriel had longed for another vacation from the hot, dry place their home of Nowhere was. She had somehow managed to get Eustace to come as well. This place was very far away from home, and Courage didn't like it. His mind was racing with every little thing that could go wrong while they were here. He was so engrossed in his thoughts, that he didn't notice the tree until he crashed into it. He fell onto his behind with a loud thump that scared a few critters deeper into the trees.

"Are you alright, Courage?" Muriel looked down at him while he rubbed his aching head, moaning. He nodded wearily. Eustace didn't seem to care. He just continued without them, mumbling how he knew he should've been sitting in his chair reading the newspaper. Courage stood up and wondered how things could possibly get worse. He trotted back to Muriel, who was a few feet ahead, and they continued down the trail.

The elevation of their path quickly steepened in less than a few meters. It was becoming increasingly difficult for Courage to keep up with Muriel. His gaze suddenly spotted a rickety sign up ahead. It stated in big, red, slightly faded words, "Danger: All who climb Mt Ebott will never return." A chill ran up his spine. He grabbed at Muriel's apron and pointed at the sign, speaking incomprehensible dog gibberish as he tried to warn her of certain danger.

"Don't be silly, Courage. I'm sure that whoever wrote that didn't mean it." She sounded unconcerned. "How would we have gotten those tickets to fly here if it wasn't safe? The man who gave them to us seemed real kind." Courage wanted to stop the vacation right now and fly right back home, where it was safe. He had been on enough trips to know that something ALWAYS happens while they are on one. But he just sighed and walked on.

"I just know something bad is going to happen." He bemoaned under his breath, not loud enough for his kind owner to hear. He was also realizing how exhausted he was already by the steep incline. He took a swig of water and looked up at the bright blue sky, wishing that the trail would end. The sun blazed down on his back. There were no more trees, as they had reached the treeline. Now there were only small bushes, practically hanging on for dear life on the side of the trail.

He stepped a ways ahead of Muriel, checking for any kind of danger, when suddenly, he tripped over a vine and tumbled down a hole he didn't notice when he was scanning for trouble. "Courage!" Muriel called out, sounding distressed and clearly worried. But he kept falling.


	2. Enemies and Allies

"AHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!" Courage's screams echoed through the cave as he descended rapidly towards the ground. He desperately reached for the walls, for something, anything, to slow his fall. It felt like he was falling for ages. Just as he thought that it was going to be a bottomless pit, he landed face first into a bed of flowers the color of sunshine.

He lay there for at least a few minutes before he decided to sit up. It was a miracle the plummet didn't kill him. Those flowers must have cushioned his fall somehow. Sitting there, with the light from the surface warming his back and the comfortable flowers all around him was peaceful. He almost didn't want to leave. Courage sighed, he had to get back to Muriel and he knew it from the bottom of his heart.

He gazed around the small grey room, if that's what you could call it, and noticed a hallway to his right. He got up onto his feet and brushed the dirt from the flower bed off. Tip toeing so as not to make a sound, he carefully went over to the hallway and watched for danger around the corner. Seeing none, Courage trotted over to a big purple doorway, and nervously looked inside.

Darkness. Nothing but darkness except for a patch of grass illuminated by filtered sunlight. A small golden flower stood in the middle, smiling happily. Wait, smiling happily? Courage blinked a few times, shocked. 'I must be seeing things,' he thought to himself. But nope, the flower still grinned gleefully, the bright light dancing off of its petals. It almost looked...menacing.

"I know that I'm not going to like this!" He half whispered, half shouted. He carefully walked inside and watched the flower suspiciously. A growl escaped his throat before he could stop it.

"Howdy! I'm Flowey! Flowey the Flower!" Courage barely kept himself from jumping through the roof. He was shaking quite violently while the little plant continued its monologue. "You're new to the Underground, aren'tcha?" He nodded, holding his muzzle in fright. "I hope I didn't frighten you!"

This was almost too much to bear. He wished he had seen the hole and had avoided it, and had not fallen. He was just about to run around Flowey, when everything went black and white. A small, glowing, orange heart appeared in front of him. "You see that? That is your SOUL, the very culmination of your being."The flower stated. Courage reached out and touched it very gently. A chill ran down his spine, and he recoiled.

"Your SOUL can get stronger if you gain a lot of LV." This flower seemed rather helpful. He wondered if it would be a good thing to trust it. "What's LV stand for? Why, LOVE of course!" Flowey gave a little wink. Love sounded nice. Like a warm bed, or a field of flowers and butterflies. "You want LOVE, don't you?" The flower teased. "You gain LOVE with little, white, friendliness pellets." At that statement, a bunch of the "friendliness pellets" appeared above Flowey.

They were small, white and spinning rapidly. He stared at them, a tinge of curiosity clouding his better judgement. "Catch all that you can!" Courage watched them fly slowly towards him. Half of him was screaming at him to dodge them, the other just was too fascinated by the white things to do anything about it. In this daze of indecision, the pellets struck his SOUL, eliciting a cry of pain. An HP bar he hadn't noticed drained from 20/20 to 1/20 in only a second.

"You IDIOT. Did you really think I wouldn't take an opportunity like this?!" Flowey's formerly friendly face transformed into a terrifying demonic persona. Courage whimpered in fright, barely containing a scream. "In this world, it's KILL OR BE KILLED!" A small circle of white pellets suddenly surrounded his body. "DIE!" The pellets moved closer and closer. Courage attempted to jump, but a strange magical force kept him from doing so. Panicking, he tried to make himself as small as possible, while the bullets closed in.

The bullets disappeared as fast as they had been summoned. A bright flame burned beside the flower and knocked it away. "Huh?" Courage glanced over to see a being that looked like a cross between Muriel and a white goat enter the room. She was wearing a robe with strange symbols embroidered into the fabric.

"What a miserable creature, torturing such a poor innocent youth!" She had a voice that sounded like someone who's seen too much bad things happen. It reminded him of his biological mom, which sent a wave of sadness and longing to his heart. A part of him wished he could still be with his parents, that they hadn't been cruelly ripped from his life by that evil vet.

"Are, are you alright?" The woman asked gently, pulling him out of his reverie. He looked up at her and nearly burst out crying. "I hope I didn't upset you..." She seemed worried. Nodding, he looked up at her and smiled. "Anyway, I am Toriel, Caretaker of the Ruins. I pass by this place every day to see if any human has fallen down. You are the first dog I've seen fall down here, though." She chuckled. "But no matter, I will still protect you."

Her comforting smile made him feel safe and her kindness made him miss Muriel's affection even more. Toriel gestured for him to follow her, and he did, slightly unwilling but only because his experience down here wasn't turning out to be that great. The next area was up ahead and he didn't want to upset her before he even really got to know her! He just wanted to be back in Muriel's lap, and if he had to follow her to do it, he would. She pushed the door open and the next room awaited him.

 _Author's note: I am planning on publishing each chapter on the weekend. Usually on a Saturday. But be prepared for fluctuations. Sometimes I might have to skip a weekend or two, but don't expect this to happen very much_.


	3. A Very Puzzling Development

The next area was very purple. Two sets of grey stairs led up to a single entrance. Snaky vines covered the walls. Red leaves littered the ground between the steps, which looked perfect for jumping in. It was fantastically picturesque for such a small room. Courage couldn't help but feel peaceful here, despite his recent ordeal with the flower. Absentmindedly, he summoned his soul and examined it. It shimmered as it hovered above his paw a few inches away from his body. Something caught his eye. He turned it around and, expecting the other side to be orange as well, it was quite different.

"What?" He murmured. The other side of his soul was a bright red color. "Is this normal?" He was so focused on this oddity that he wasn't paying attention to Toriel at all. She was already at the top of the stairs and waiting patiently. Courage inspected the edge of his soul and it was the color you'd expect from mixing red and orange together. It was a perfect blend. Both colors clashed horribly with his pink fur. Toriel watched his fascination with interest.

"I've never seen a soul with two colors before." She remarked, breaking the pink dog out of his thought process. He stepped towards the stairs, still staring at the glowing red and orange heart. Out of the corner of his eye, he saw a yellow star floating above the leaves between the stairs. It flashed brightly. Interest piqued, he bounded over to it, mesmerized by it's glow pattern. He let his soul go back to where it belonged and reached out to the star. He hesitated a bit before he actually touched it.

A strangely warm feeling coursed through his body. He felt ready to take on anything the Underground threw at him. _The shadow of the Ruins looms over you, filling you with Bravery and Determination. HP fully restored_. He screamed out of reflex. He swore he heard a voice whispering into his ears. Courage quivered against the stairs, looking for any sign of anyone, or anything. Toriel had practically ran down the stairs to see what had him so frightened. But nobody was there, at least nobody they could see.

"What is it?" A wild gab of gibberish ensued as Courage pointed to the star hovering above the leaves. "I don't see anything." She looked confused. He dejectedly followed her up the stairs and into the opening above. It led to a small room just as purple as the last one. Several buttons were on the floor, ready to be pressed. Before he could do anything, Toriel stepped over and walked onto four of them in a square, then pulled a lever up on the wall. A dark purple door in front of him opened.

"The Ruins are full of puzzles like these. Ancient fusions between diversions and door keys. One must solve them in order to move from room to room. Please adjust yourself to the sight of them." She waited as he stared intently at the puzzle. Courage broke himself out of his trance before it could get too intense. He headed over to a sign he had noticed a second earlier, right next to the door. It read: _Only the fearless may proceed. Brave ones, foolish ones both walk not the middle road._

"Oh, great." Courage mumbled, wondering if it meant that someone so cowardly as he shouldn't go forward. _You are brave, Courage. Don't you ever think otherwise._ That voice again! Courage did a better job of not screaming this time. "Who are you?" He glared at the empty room, searching for abnormalities. But the voice didn't respond. Shrugging, he entered the door in front of him.

A medium length hallway with two streams of water passing through it was not what he was expecting. Two bridges crossed the waters. More vines crawled up the walls. Toriel was standing in front of the first bridge. A lever with a multitude of arrows pointing to it was on the wall to the left. Confidence overrides any fear as he went over and flipped the switch. It appeared to do nothing, but she seemed happy at this behavior.

She moved on to the exit, where a pair of spike sets portruded in the doorway. A couple of levers were on the wall. Courage picked out the one with the helpful markings surrounding it and pulled it down. A click was heard as the sharp traps were released and it was safe to cross. Moving on, a very small room with a dummy was next. He stared at it until given instruction by Toriel.

"When a monster encounters you, you will enter a FIGHT. In this FIGHT I want you to talk yourself out of the situation with no violence. Go ahead, try it out on the dummy!" She stepped over to the next door and supervised. Courage tip toed over to it. The dummy said nothing as he gently poked it. He jumped as it rocked back and forth at his touch. Soon, everything went black and white. His soul hovered mere centimeters out of his chest. Options appeared in front of him, FIGHT, ACT, ITEM, and MERCY.

Clicking ACT, he selected Talk. "Um, hi Mr. Dummy. I, uh, nice weather we're having, right?" It didn't reply. _The dummy doesn't seem up for conversation. Toriel is happy with you. YOU WON! You earned 0 EXP and 0 GOLD._ The voice seemed to like narrating what he does, which he didn't really mind. The FIGHT thing didn't seem so hard now. Color returned to the room and Toriel looked extremely pleased.

"Well done, young one! If you encounter a real monster, ACT and I will come and resolve the issue." For some reason, this didn't seem very effective to Courage. If he got into a FIGHT, he was confident he could handle it himself. _'I've dealt with worse than this back home,'_ He thought, looking pointedly at Toriel. Sighing, he continued following her. _I've just got to get back to Muriel before she could get in trouble!_


	4. SAVE

Courage was filled with anticipation as he was guided through the big door. Disappointment crossed his eyes when the next area was just like the others he'd been through. It had only been a few minutes since he fell down, but this was getting repetitive. Purple everywhere, red leaves, and vines was getting boring. It was a small room like the others. A hallway was immediately to his right.

"There is another puzzle up ahead. I wonder if you can solve it?" Toriel's gentle voice spoke, startling him. Hurriedly, they made their way to the hallway in under three seconds. The corridor was not as straight as he imagined it was. The small dog stepped forward, about to continue, when a strange creature blocked his path without warning. A FIGHT quickly ensued, while Courage took the time to freak out a bit. It was a frog creature that didn't seem very happy to see him. A small face peeked out from under its legs.

Deciding that it wasn't much of a threat, he tried to spare it immediately. Nothing happened, except small flies started to fly at him. Dodging every single one of them was hard. At least a few managed to hit him and his soul. The flies disappeared, and he was given the options again. His paw hovered over the FIGHT button, but he changed his mind and placed it on the ACT option. He complimented the little guy. "I... I like your face." It sounded so awkward. More flies were evaded. _The Froggit didn't understand what you said, but was flattered anyway_. Toriel entered the battle and discouraged the fight from continuing.

Abruptly the hallway ended and entered into a room with water and a big spike trap puzzle. Toriel stopped at the edge, nearly causing Courage to run into her. "Hold my hand." She held it out, and he grabbed it like his life depended on it. She walked forward and spikes retreated. Gripping harder on her hand, he tried to suppress his anxiety as he took his first steps onto the trap. After one trap was passed, the spikes returned to their original positions. Sharp turns took him almost by surprise, but he caught on fast enough. The plates were smooth and cold on his paws, leaving an uncomfortable feeling of standing in the cold. Avoiding the spike holes to the best of his ability was annoying, but it was necessary with his tiny paws.

The other end of the room took what felt like ages to get to. A breath he didn't even realize he was holding was released. "Puzzles seem too dangerous right now." _Ya think?_ He gave her a scowl she didn't notice. She immediately started for the upcoming room, Courage dutifully trailing. A annoyingly long hall ahead needed to be traversed, much to his chagrin. A sign on the near wall stated _Stay on the path_ in big letters that he could read from where he was. And sure enough, a lighter shade of purple stood as a rather nice path. Toriel without giving any sign, walked ahead with a quick pace.

Hesitation was his enemy as he stood there awkwardly, confusion causing him to tilt his head to the side. A few more minutes of this and he determined that being so still won't do him any good, so he started walking through the elongated room, eager to reach the other side. A glance at the exit made it seem further and further away, the time passing by increasingly slow. His paws ached with all the stress of simply making it to the imaginary finish line. Apprehension prompted him to pause and take in his current position. _When will this end?_ His mind began to race with possible bad things happening to Muriel. Moaning with fear, he took the plunge and started walking some more, with a quickened pace.

He reached the end with a sigh of relief. A grey pillar surrounded by vines stood mightily by the exit. Toriel walked out from behind it, seemingly unaware of how long the room was to him. It felt like he had walked to Nowhere Town and home in one go. His respite quickly faded into irritation. Courage wanted so badly to be back in Muriel's arms, but following this goat lady was getting old real fast. "I am proud of you, young pup." Her countenance was gentle as she said these words, "This exercise was to test your independence. I would not want you to not stand on your own two feet!

"Here is a cellphone. You can use it to call me whenever you need assistance or have lost your way. (But that will never happen)" She handed him a small device that he hadn't seen in his life. It looked pretty high tech, on par with Computer. It had small buttons and a small screen. A mini antenna reached out from its boxy body. A few experimental button presses and the screen presented him with an empty page with slots, stating "INVENTORY" At the top. Another button made the screen change to a list of numbers. "CONTACTS" it said in bright yellow letters, like the inventory before.

"I have work to do somewhere else, wait here until I come back. Do not leave the room." She hurried into the next area, leaving Courage to fiddle with his newly acquired cellphone some more. One of the contacts, he noticed, was Toriel. He pressed call and waited patiently for her to pick up. It was not long before her voice echoed in his ear, causing him to wince at the volume. Turning it down with a dial, he pressed it against his ear once more.

"This is Toriel, how may I help you?" An option box appeared in front of his paws. He clicked, Say Hello, which he did with great vigor. "You called me just to say hello? Why greetings, does that suffice?" She hung up before he could answer. Shrugging, he recognized how bored he was just standing here. The exit looked so tantalizing, he just couldn't resist. He hurriedly exited the hall and the cellphone ringing scared him as soon as he entered the other room.

"You have not left the room, have you?" Instead of sounding upset, she sounded quite worried, "There are some puzzles up ahead I have yet to explain." The call ended as soon as it began. Glancing around the room, he saw another one of those star things glowing above a leaf pile. He readily pressed his paws against it and that feeling reappeared again. _Playing in the leaves fills you with Bravery and Determination. HP fully restored_. The voice didn't terrify him as much as it did, now that he expected it.

Before he had a chance to walk away, a black box appeared in front of him. The name "Chara" written in one corner, with a null sign at the top and in the other corner. SAVE and RETURN at the respective bottom corners. This was new. "Huh?" He didn't pay as much attention to the name as he did the big SAVE option. Hovering over the button, it turned yellow until he actually clicked it. A ringing sound surprised him and the top now says "Ruins: Leaf Pile" A time at the corner states that it has already been 10 minutes since he fell down the hole. _Wonder what that did_. He thought with a sense of dread.


	5. Frustrations

A few seconds after he saved, Courage spied an opening on the wall to his left. Curious, he wandered over to it and without hesitation, entered. A grey pedestal stood proudly in the center, streams of water on either side of it. A bowl was placed on top of the pedestal, with what he could only guess, being so short. Walking up to it, he used the pedestal to boost himself rather precariously as he peered at the contents.

Small multicolored pieces of what he assumed was candy filled the bowl to the brim. But he could only stare at them for mere seconds before his grip on the miniature pillar gave out and he fell roughly to the cold hard surface of the ground. "Ow!" He got up, regretting his recent decision. He suddenly had an urge to take one of the small candies. A small sign he hadn't noticed on the bowl said, in small letters, _Please, take one_. Well, how could he refuse that request? He reached up and picked one out of the small bowl.

It disappeared out of his paws before he could react. Perplexed, he grabbed another one. _You took more candy, how disgusting_. The Voice whispered, with a hint of distaste. He attempted to put it back, but it had disappeared like the other one. More than a little annoyed, he grabbed another one, only to have it vanish. _You took another piece, you feel like the scum of the earth._ Now the Voice was getting very irritating. He only wanted to have some candy! Why was it always disappearing? _Check your phone's inventory,_ the Voice informed him, sounding none too impressed.

Oh right, the inventory function! He fumbled as he took it out. He pulled up his inventory and now three items were inside. Apparently it was called 'Monster Candy'. His hand reached for another one, but the bowl flipped over onto the ground, seemingly of its own volition, which spooked Courage enough for him to jump back a little. _You never learn, do you?_ The Voice came across as rather smug at his situation. It was just as bad as Katz, their smugness. Growling, he stalked away from the bowl and continued onward.

Seemingly random piles of leaves were scattered throughout the short hallway, including the save point pile. Just as he was nearing the end, a small fly like creature approached meekly, initiating another FIGHT. Whimsum, it was called. A few seconds of trying to spare it, and it was over as fast as it began. How many times will this happen? A frustrated glance at the exit and he indignantly approached the next area.

It was smaller than the others he'd seen so far. The only things different about this room was the many cracks in the ground and the two slots in the wall. He paused, apprehensive about the safety of crossing the line of cracks. Maybe he should just jump over them. Courage took in a deep breath and leaped, which was going alright until he hit some invisible barrier and fell onto the fractured floor. He fell through with a terrified yelp and a scream later he landed onto a helpful bed of leaves.

Panic stricken, he sat there shaking while he made an effort to collect his bearings. Two doors were on either side of the row of leaves. Which one? After a lot of thought, he decided that the one on the right was his best bet. He rose up and entered. He somehow floated to the correct slot. Pushing himself through the slot, he lept for the floor and somersaulted until he hit the opposite wall.

A rock, some spikes, a sign, and a button were before him in the next room. The sign stated that 'three out of four rocks recommend you push them.' Stepping up to the stone, he pressed himself against it, and pushed. Surprisingly, it was lighter than he expected and he found himself lying on the ground again. It still wasn't quite pressing the button though. Courage pushed it the rest of the way, slightly embarrassed, even though there was no one there. Well, almost no one, the Voice was laughing hysterically. _Very funny_ , he thought, annoyed. He walked over the now retracted spike trap and on to the next room.

A small anteroom connected to a large one, with cracked floors abound. Not this again! He carefully pressed a paw onto one of the unstable parts of the floor. It fell through, tripping him up and sending him spiraling down. A nice floor of leaves padded his fall, except for a suspicious pathway. A sign directly on the next wall pronounced, 'Don't step on the leaves'. Okay, okay! He bounded off the leaves and onto the path. A door near the entrance was his only escape. That weird floating to the upper level happened once he stepped inside.

He tapped the innermost spot with his paw, but that still led to falling down into the hole. Grunting in frustration, he wondered what would happen if he landed on the path instead of the leaves. That would hurt. But wait! If there is no leaves here, there'd be no possibility that he'd be able to fall in the first place. The sign said to stay off the leaves. He considered the possibility that that could be the solution to the puzzle. He practically ran to the door and raced to test out this new theory. But was stopped by another FIGHT. Sparing the Froggit, he continued.

He jumped onto the spot he'd swear was the right place and...nothing happened. It held up his weight with ease. Leaping for joy he skipped down the steady floor until he realized he forgot where it went next! Fear gripped him in its clutches as he felt for the path. Wrong way. He was left with trying to memorize the way. It made such twists and turns, he wasn't so sure he could remember it all. Courage tried again, got a little further, but his mind drew a blank and he had to guess. More incorrect decisions later and he finally made it to the exit.

"I hope that the rest of the puzzles aren't too hard, I have to get back to Muriel!" He proclaimed. The only thing he heard was the sound of his footsteps as he resumed to his journey through the Ruins.

 _Author's Note: I'm sorry for the big delay between chapters.I had a sudden lack of motivation to write anything. You could call it procrastination, but I digress. Chapters from now on might be more sporadic, but I will try my best to keep to my schedule. If I do post a new chapter, it will always be on a Saturday if I can help it. Sorry for any inconveniences._


End file.
